Taken
by Mythicalnightguard
Summary: When Jed and Octavius, two young adoptive brothers are kidnapped after being left home alone, they must learn how to be brave and trust themselves and each other to escape. With the help of new friends, a concerned pedestrian, and good luck, they will try to escape. In a world where the worst can happen to anyone, one is never too young to fight back. AU. No slash. Thriller.


"Ha!" Jed pumped a fist into the air, grinning from ear to ear as he turned to point a finger at his adoptive brother. "Got yah! Got yah real good!"

Octavius huffed and crossed his arms, letting his remote fall onto the couch. "Lucky break. I'll get you next time."

Jed made a dismissive sound and paused the game. "It ain't mah fault yah suck at fightin'."

Octavius gave him a playful shove, then rose to his feet. "I'm hungry. Want anything?"

Jed shook his head. "Nah, I'm good."

Octavius shrugged. "Suit yourself."

Leaving Jed in the living room, Octavius made his way through the hallway and into the kitchen.

It was a normal night for the two teens, who were both in their pajamas and enjoying the peace and quiet of their empty home. Their parents- well, Octavius' parents and Jed's adoptive ones- were away for the weekend on a business trip, leaving the fourteen and thirteen year olds home alone. That was not a problem, though; both of them were responsible, and use to being left to their own devices.

They knew the general rules of being home alone. Keep the doors locked. Avoid standing by the windows for too long. Keep as many lights on as you can. And, of course, let nobody in, and avoid going outside. Only open the door to let the dog out. And the dog, and old husky lovingly referred to as Ol'Reliable, or just Reliable, was big and protective enough to keep out any possible threats to the boys. And, of course, every emergency contact they could ever need was tapped to the fridge, clearly written for even the most panicked of eyes to see.

With nothing to fear but fear itself, Octavius opened the fridge, pulling out a soda and a jar of salsa. The chips he wanted were in the cupboard above the sink, and he reached inside to pull them out. His eyes passed over the brand name, and he frowned. _Natio's Crisps_. Gross.

"Eww." He muttered to himself, making a face at the bag. _Natio's_ brand chips, no matter what his father said, were the worst. To him, they tasted like cardboard.

Octavius once again closed the cupboard, moving instead to the lazy susan beneath the microwave. Maybe his mother had bought _Doritos_ or _Pringles_ or something good like that. Something two hungry teenage boys would actually eat.

After a few moments of searching, he found a half-empty bag of _UTZ._ These were Jed's favorite, so he would have to fight him over a decent share, even though he had said that he did not want anything. This was Jed. He was always hungry.

In the living room, the familiar buzz of a cell phone echoed, and Jed answered it. Octavius paid this no mind. It was probably that chick Jed had been talking about lately. Melody or something. A tough one, who at first glance looked more like a dude than a woman. A tomboy, she was- and far stronger than Jed. Octavius still had no idea what his brother saw in someone like that. He himself had much more...refined tastes. Actually, he had very little taste at all. There was no time to think about love. After all, he was only fourteen. He had his entire life to live. All he cared about right now were his grades and his family. As it should be.

Octavius' thoughts were cut short as Reliable began to bark. This was not unusual- he always barked when he needed to go outside. He was a dog, after all. However, his tone of bark sounded a bit... different. Aggressive, almost. But, he paid little attention to that. He was probably barking at a squirrel or a cat or some other creature.

Intent on letting out his whimpering, bristling friend, Octavius was vaguely aware of his brother's voice in the other room.

"No, ma, we ain't drinkin' or nothin' like that. Yeah, we'll be in bed by 11:00...yah, he's in the kitchen. Yah wanna talk ta him?... Okay. Ockie!"

"I'll be there in a minute!" Octavius called back. "I'm just letting Reliable outside!"

Octavius ignored a playful jest from Jed, who told their mother that he was "playing with knives or something", and turned his attention to the back door. Reliable was scratching eagerly at it. The poor guy. He probably had to go really bad.

He reached out, gripping the handle to pull it open. As soon as he did, he froze.

There, only an arm's length away from him, stood a tall, hooded, dark...thing. Buried under a layer of black coats against the cool winter air, it was hard to make who the person was, or even what they were. That feeling of fear one gets when they know their life is in danger settled over him. His stomach dropped, his throat tightened- he was sweating from every pore.

For a brief moment, time stood still. He was aware of Reliable barking and launching himself at the figure, only to have his legs kicked out from beneath him. The dog fell and howled out in pain, but the figure moved past him, forcing its way inside. Octavius moved back, to astonished to even make a stand against them. From the living room, he could hear Jed's panicked voice, and then, all of a sudden, a ringing sound, followed by a sharp pain in the side of his head. He went down, his thought a fear for his brother's life.

Jed, cell phone still pressed against his ear, made to the kitchen entryway just as his brother's body crumpled to the tile floor. He let out a broken scream, the phone dropping to the floor as a figure- it looked like a man- lifted a blunt bat and turned to face him.

" _Jed? Jed!? Can you hear me!? Jed!?"_ His mother's panicked voice cried from the phone, only to be cut off as the man stepped on it.

Jed swallowed hard, his young heart beating at such a rate he was sure it would burst from his chest. He took a step back, his eyes meeting the shadowy depths of the masked man. Nothing but his brother's groaning and Reliable's yelping could be heard as the man took a step towards him.

There was little time to think. Even less time to move. He had to get out of there. He had to run- and run as fast as he could. The neighbors, next door. They would help them. He just needed to get there.

Jed could hear the heavy footsteps of the man as he pursued him, drawing ever closer with each second. Tears streamed from his eyes as he shouted and bawled for the man to go away, pushing himself to run faster and faster until he reached the front door. His shaking hands fumbled with the lock, unlocking it and flinging it open-

A loud thump, pain surging through his head, his world spinning around him. Falling. He was falling down, landing slumped against the open door. The last thing his eyes saw was a woman leaning over him, dressed similarly to the man.

Holding a baseball bat.

Smiling.

Jed was unconscious now, but little did he know what terrible adventure was in store for him and Octavius, and just how brave they needed to be.


End file.
